OSAKA, Nov 21 (News On Japan) - The iconic Osaka Marubiru in Umeda, closed last year due to aging, will be replaced with a new 192-meter skyscraper, the tallest in the Osaka Station area.
Set to open in 2030, the new building will feature a hotel, concert hall, LED-equipped atrium, and preserve the old Marubiru's symbolic electric billboard.
During the Osaka-Kansai Expo, the site will temporarily serve as a bus terminal.
Source: YOMIURI
The Japanese government has set a new wage policy target aimed at achieving a real wage increase of around 1% by fiscal 2029, taking inflation into account. To support this goal, it plans to mobilize public and private investment totaling approximately 60 trillion yen over the next five years to boost corporate productivity.
The season’s first bluefin tuna catch landed in Sakaiminato City, Tottori Prefecture, on Wednesday morning, marking the earliest start to the summer fishing season since records began in 1982.
A bill to revise the Kyūtoku Law, aiming to improve the treatment of Japan's public school teachers by gradually raising the salary supplement in place of overtime pay from 4% to 10%, was approved by the Lower House Committee on Education on Wednesday after ruling and opposition parties agreed on revisions.
A lawsuit over the right to education in Japanese Sign Language concluded at the Sapporo High Court on May 13th, with a junior high school girl using the language in court to state that "Japanese Sign Language is my identity."
A 36-year-old unemployed man has been arrested on suspicion of abducting a teenage girl who was later found dead in Yamagata Prefecture. The suspect, Hiroki Kishinami from Fukushima City, has previously been arrested three times for offenses including the abduction of minors and assisting in suicides.
Kadoya Sesame Mills and Takemoto Oil & Fat have been accused of forming a cartel over the wholesale pricing of sesame oil and related products, prompting Japan’s Fair Trade Commission to issue an elimination order against the two companies.
The revised Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Act, passed by Japan's Upper House on May 14th, will allow over-the-counter drugs to be sold at convenience stores if consumers first receive online guidance from licensed pharmacists or other qualified professionals.
Zensho Holdings, operator of the Sukiya beef bowl chain, reported a 17.7% rise in annual revenue to 1.1366 trillion yen for the fiscal year ending March 2025—marking the first time a domestic restaurant company in Japan has exceeded 1 trillion yen in sales.
SoftBank Group has returned to profitability for the first time in four years, reporting on May 13th a net profit of 1.1533 trillion yen for the fiscal year ending March 2025, driven by a global rebound in stock markets that sharply boosted the value of its investment holdings.
There has been a major development in the so-called "Trump tariffs" negotiations, in which Japan is also involved. The United States and China, which had been imposing more than 100% tariffs on each other, agreed on May 12th to reduce those tariffs by 115%.
A prized early-season melon from Hokkaido's Iburi region fetched 300,000 yen for five pieces at the season's first auction held on the morning of May 13th in Sapporo.
Nissan Motor has decided to cut nearly 20,000 jobs globally as it struggles with worsening business performance.
A new matcha product priced at 4,320 yen for just 30 grams is drawing attention amid a global boom in Japanese green tea, as surging demand has made matcha increasingly difficult to procure even within Japan.
